The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1887-05-28
A REulNIscencE OF JUMBO.
His Coming to America Almost
an Accident.
New York Times, May LIST.

suit OF Barnun1, Ddlley anu 1utcn-
inson against the Grand Trunk
Railway Company brings to mind
a chapter in circus history which
has never been told and which de-
scribes the almost accidental way
i'm which the firm Of showmen came
into possession of their most fam
Gus and most remunerative attrac-
ton. During the year preceding
Jumbo's purchase the firm had a
man named Warner in Europe
ranging the entire continent for at
fractions. He went eastward and
northward as far as st. Petersburg
in an effort to secure JO-Jo, the
dog-faced boy, but failed. He
turned up at the firms office in
Bond street in this city empty
handed. Baily was the first of the
trio to see him.
"Find anything?" asked he.
"No," said Warner.
What's the biggest thing you
saw over tneTc
biggest thing saw was an ele-
phant in the London Zoo"
"How big?"
"Well, about 80 high" said War
ner, raising his umbrella to arms
length and touching spot on the
wall.
Bailey looked at it in some sur
prise. "Are you sure said he.
eyes. The elelephant had to
90 under an archway to get out OF
his quarters, and his back just
scraped the top. l measured it
with my umbrella"
eddie, get a stepladder and
measure that" said Bailey. Mr.
Mott got a stepladder and meas
ured it and Bailey quickly discov-
cred that the elephant was proba
bly, the biggest one extant.
"Can he be bought2" asked he
"Oh, yes" Warner didn't know
whether he could or not, but h'
ventured it.
Bailey Immediately cabled as
follows:
Mr.. -, London Geological
Gardens: What is your loves
price for the big African elephant
BARNUM, BAILEY Il HUTCHINSON.
The answer came next day:
Messrs. Barnum, Bailey and Hut
Crimson: Will sell him for e., 900
Then the real difficulty began
The firm had about forty elephants
and the necessity for another wa
not clearly apparent. The firm
made a practice of dividing tn
profits weekly during the season
it was winter, and the purchas'
meant a joint outlay of $1,000 TO
Barnum and $500 each for tn
others. But Bailey had set hi
heart on the big elephant. 1t hap
pended that both Forepaugh ant
Coup had each a big elephant, o
which they proposed to make
leader i'm the coming season. ant
this overcame Hutchinson's Objec
tions. Barnum at first objected
, but afterwards he, too, came round
Then two men, Davis and New
man, were sent over to get tn
elephant and bring him to America
No sooner did this fact becom
known in London than it created
.. an immense sensation. jumbo
: appeared that the elephants nam
was Jumbo-had engulfed bun
from the hands of Great Britain's ba
, bies and carried the British Lion
! human posterity around on hi
: back for so many years that he ha
: come to be regarded as quite a
. much a national property as tn
!, British Museum or the dome of $
: : paul's. The papers teemed wit
/, the matter. The roars of the indie
: nant British baby could be hear
: = as plainly in print as the moan
y and sobs of Alice, Jumbo's wifi
!, who was about to be divorced o
= grounds of American business Ell
. terprise. Letters of expostulatio
came numerously. The publ
y were reminded that the same val
; dal hands which nearly picked u
Shakespeare's house to carry
bodily from Standardization
New Hudson were abol
to rob Victoria's realm of her grea
- est, her only Jumbo. The Chris
u mas number of the London Trut
= . was entirely devoted to Jumbo an
= Barnum. The entire populace
"a q the United Kingdom was arouse
y y every paper was discussing Il
II matter, and the cable and Amer
can journals were humming wit
'e " it. As an advertising propositio
ls s whether or not it succeeded, it WI
:. :. to the circus men simply magni
4 cent:
\ The trio did not aid in quietil
~ the people any. They dutiful
70 helped along the trouble all tn
{. could. Beside stirring up the po
pr ular indignation-they could
70 this safely, as they had q bill
- eale-thev removed serious Obst